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EBC Physical Therapy
and Registered Nurse Associates, PLLC |
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251 Cole Hill Road
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WHAT IS HIPPOTHERAPY? Hippotherapy, from the Greek word hippo or horse, is a treatment strategy that literally means “treatment with the help of a horse”. The movement of the horse is a treatment tool used by physical occupational or speech therapists to achieve functional goals.
Hippotherapy provides patients with a dynamic sensory motor
experience that promotes motor planning abilities, mobilizes the hips, pelvis
and spine, stimulates the central nervous system, normalizes muscle tone and
activates weak muscles which leads to improved postural control, balance
reactions, and functional mobility
Generally, the primary focus of a physical therapy treatment session is influencing postural and motor responses. Positive effects from the movement of the horse can be seen in : · Motor coordination · Muscle tone · Postural alignment · Flexibility · Strength · Respiratory and endurance · Sensory processing · Balance · And speech/language production functions.
These changes may be a direct effect of the horse’s movement or it may result from postural and motor changes of the individual. For instance, the patient’s respiration and speech may improve as a result of improvements in trunk alignment and motor coordination. The focus of PT may not be to achieve changes in speech production, but it can often occur. That is the beauty of using the horse’s movement as a treatment tool and also why the varied disciplines of PT, OT and Speech can use hippotherapy so successfully as a part of their treatment programs. A patient may be positioned astride the horse facing forward or backward, sitting sideways, or lying prone or supine. The patient interacts with and actively responds to the horse’s movement. The variability of the horse’s gait enables the therapist to grade the degree of sensory input to the patients which impacts the patient’s vestibular, tactile and proprioceptive systems. In hippotherapy the horse influences the rider rather than the rider controlling the horse. Specific riding skills are not taught, as in therapeutic horseback riding; but rather establish a foundation for improving neurological function and sensory processing that can be generalized to a wide variety of activities outside the treatment setting. Besides improving balance, posture, mobility and function, hippotherapy can also improve patients' cognitive, behavioral and communication capabilities, therapists say. Patients with conditions such as cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, strokes, developmental delays, sensory integration disorder, autism and neurological disorders are good candidates for hippotherapy. Information adapted from American Hippotherapy Association. http://www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org/
Hippotherapy is part of a complete treatment program. It can be used as a preparatory activity such as using the movement of the horse to facilitate increased arousal and postural tone for a patient who is hypotonic, prior to gait training. It can be used to mobilize the spine and pelvis to allow for participation in developmental positions on the floor. Hippotherapy can be used as a primary tool, leading to improved function off of the horse, such as achievement of midline orientation, improvements in gait, and improved sequencing/motor planning. The movement of the horse may also be used as a follow up or preparatory activity to other PT procedures done off of the horse. The possibilities of using the tool are endless, as the input from the movement of the horse is so strong, and provides such a variety of sensory-motor experiences.
General Indications
for Hippotherapy
Information adapted from American Hippotherapy Association. http://www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org/
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